The Inevitable
by MandaLou
Summary: Is Jack back to his old ways? Or is this something different? Jack and OC-Harper VanMeter
1. Chapter 1

**Standard disclaimer: I love 'em but I don't own 'em!! Thank you Mr. Wolf.**

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_This is my first time doing this so, of course, reviews are very welcome! _

_I don't know how this begins and I don't know how it ends. Heck, I don't even know who 'she' is. I literally dreamed it. So... Let me know._

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She felt awkward standing there in the living room.

"Jack?"

He turned to her with a quizzical look. The warmth in his eyes never ceased to amaze her.

"Thanks, again."

Sincerity flowed from the younger woman and at that moment Jack felt the urge to reach out to her. He thought better of it.

"Anytime." he said with a smile, but he couldn't seem to make himself turn to continue leaving.

Taking a couple of steps closer she began, "I just... Well, I..."

Her proximity to the much older man's warmth both literally and figuratively suddenly made coherent thinking very difficult. This was something she'd began to expect while around Jack McCoy. Feeling self-conscious and brave all at the same time she reached up and softly kissed the DA's cheek. Pulling away, but keeping within inches of him she looked into his eyes hoping she wasn't crossing a line she'd regret.

Jack was more than a little taken aback by the kiss. Much to his surprise he found himself not only wanting to continue the embrace, but _needing_ to. He bent down and found her mouth with his. Her body went rigid and for a second Jack began to wonder if he'd miss read her actions. Soon her mouth began to move against his and her arms entwined themselves around his neck. Jack knew there was no going back for either of them.

They stood there kissing in her living room for what seemed like hours. His arms wrapped snuggly around her small waist. Her fingers ran through his more salt than pepper hair. Suddenly she was with her back against the door-grateful for the stability it created. With one firm hand on her hip Jack reached up and caressed her neck with tenderness. Their mouths and tongues twisted around one another expertly. Often in the last few weeks as they'd grown closer she had wondered what Jack McCoy's kisses would be like. His charm was undeniable, but she found it hard to reconcile the reputation of a womanizing prosecutor with the man she'd come to know. She knew she'd let his age obscure her view. Now as his mouth moved to her neck and his hand slid under her blouse making contact with her skin she knew-this is was the _real_ charm of Jack McCoy. Never had she been kissed with such intense passion yet such gentle attentiveness. Like the fervor of a teenager and the ease of a man who knew he had all night were rolled into one. He made her feel like she was the only woman he ever wanted. She was putty in Jack's hands and there was nothing she could do about it-not that she wanted to.

When he made contact with the warm skin beneath her blouse she let out a soft moan into Jack's ear. His longing for her increased immensely. It had been a long time since a woman had stirred such passion in him. Certainly he'd had several relationships in the last few years, but this was something he hadn't felt in quite awhile. He knew he was too old for this sort of thing. He had long abandoned the actions that earned him the reputation he still held. The years had changed him and now with his elevated position at One Hogan Place liaisons could be dangerous. He hated that he had to consider things such as scandal, but what he hated more was knowing he had no control over this longing. He couldn't ignore it anymore. He returned his mouth to hers as his hand slowly moved up her torso. Her breath caught in anticipation.

**BANG! BANG! **The door beneath them rattled and they were both startled back to reality.

"Takeout..."she mumbled confused and breathless. "I ordered takeout before you came."

Jack smiled, pleased with the pink flush of her cheeks.

"I'll meet you in the bedroom." he said with a chuckle, very sure of himself.

As he strode down the hallway she couldn't help but notice the DA's swagger. She'd seen it before just not in this context-walking out of a courtroom after a big win, yes; walking down the hallway to her bedroom, no. It tickled her slightly.

**BANG!! BANG!! **

"Takeout! Right..."

"Well I hope you're hungry later." she said as she walked into the bedroom.

Jack was sitting there on her bed barefoot, in his jeans, shirt unbuttoned. He smiled at her surprise, not a huge smile, but enough that it touched his eyes. She loved that. She wondered what would happen after they crossed this line. Was she just another conquest or was it different with her? She wanted to believe the latter, but her brain told her otherwise. But for tonight she'd just pretend. She'd pretend that she was the only woman he ever wanted and these were the first of many touches; pretend he'd always look at her with those smiling eyes.

In moments like these Jack always compared women to her. It was far from fair-he knew that, but nonetheless. She wasn't a classic beauty like Claire. You'd never catch her in a string of pearls on a Wednesday. Her beauty was more subtle, but she was most definitely beautiful. As she walked towards him he felt something-butterflies!! Jack McCoy had butterflies! The look on her faced wasn't seductive. It was confident, but more vulnerable than anything. He didn't want to hurt her. It always seemed to be inevitable though-the pain he caused the women in his life. Never intentional, but always inevitable. But for now he'd just pretend. He'd pretend he wouldn't disappoint her; pretend she wouldn't hate him in the end.

But who knows? Maybe there is a 'happily ever after' for him. Hell, he's Jack McCoy. Who knows?

_Maybe._


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

_Three weeks earlier…._

Harper VanMeter sat at her desk in the Manhattan District Attorney's office going over witness statements for one of her current cases. It had been two months since she'd transferred from the Brooklyn D.A.'s office and she was beginning to think she'd made a mistake. She'd always thrived when faced with a challenge, but these days it seemed she was doing more sinking that swimming. The workload was tough, but it wasn't anything she couldn't handle. Her obstacle seemed to be more of a personnel issue-more specifically a _boss _issue. She'd always gotten along well with her supervisors. Understandably she was new and therefore they were keeping an eye on her and her work, but she couldn't do her job with Jack McCoy second guessing her every step of the way. In fact she'd just come from his office not too long ago. Another "discussion", this time about a plea agreement. His words still stung.

"Mr. McCoy-"

"Jack." His tone was more annoyed than anything. It certainly didn't make her want to call him Jack.

"-I understand what you're saying, but Johnson is an opportunistic creep. He took advantage of Mrs. Kramer and-"

"Offer him the plea, Harper."

"I can get the conviction without his testimony. I just need-" desperation was beginning to leak into her voice.

"Harper," the volume of his voice rose as did the annoyed tone. "Make the deal." He picked up the file he'd been reading and continued his work.

Harper knew this was the signal that all discussions were over and she should exit the office. Unfortunately, Harper's emotions sometimes got the best of her and when that happened her mouth had a mind of it's own. "With all due respect, sir, how am I supposed to do my job when you're constantly looking over my shoulder?" As soon as it left her mouth she knew she shouldn't have said it.

Jack calmly put his file down and took off his reading glasses. Too calmly-Harper knew it was a bad sign. "With all due respect, Ms. VanMeter, you do your job by going out there and doing what _I_ tell you to. The last time I checked I was still the boss around here, so if you want _keep_ your job you make the deal." Jack put his glasses back on and picked up his file. Looking over the top of his glasses Harper had a stunned expression on her face. "Are we clear?"

Just thinking about it now made Harper sick at her stomach. How could she have been so careless? This is where she'd always wanted to be and now she was a heartbeat away from traffic court. Sje decided wallowing in self-pity wasn't going to get her statements done so with a sigh she buried her regret in work.

Turning his light off Jack McCoy was finally headed out for the night. Mike and Connie were going to think he stood them up. On his way to the elevator he saw a light still on in one of the cubicles. Taking a detour to see who was working late he saw Harper VanMeter going through several files at her desk. As he got closer he could see earbuds in her ears and hear her humming along to the music. He knew he'd made the right decision allowing her transfer from Brooklyn. She was a good lawyer. You couldn't have her record and not be, but she was headstrong and idealistic. It would take more than a few dressing downs from him to tame her.

"Working late?" he asked walking up to her desk. She didn't notice him approach. He taped a finger on her desk, startling her out of her concentrated state.

Tearing her earbuds out quickly and repressing the urge to scream she asked, "I'm sorry?"

Jack looked amusingly at her. "What are you listening to?" He motioned to her ipod on the desk.

"Oh! Umm.. The Beatles. Revolver. I hope it's OK. I don't use it during office hours…."

"It's fine," he shrugged. Jack glanced at the files in front of her. "The McKinney case… how do you feel about it?"

"Good, this motion they applied for is without merit. I'm confidant Judge Robinson will dismiss it." She looked at him sure he'd have a scowl on his face and say something about being prepared and not taking anything for granted. He just nodded and gave a little grunt.

"Mr. McCoy-"

"Ja-"

"Jack," she paused looking him in the eye. "I owe you an apology for earlier. I over-stepped. I was out of line and I'm sorry." Jack just shrugged and shook his head. "The truth is: I have a hard time filtering between my head and my mouth and… you intimidate me. I'm not used to that and I'm not used to being second guessed...."

Jack took a seat next to her desk. "Harper, you're a very good prosecutor. You wouldn't be in my office if you weren't. That being said you still have a lot to learn and I'm not in the habit of giving young A.D.A.'s free reign on cases."

Harper's cheeks blushed with embarrassment. A trait she despised, it always betrayed her and her emotions.

"And as far as being intimidated goes, don't be." Jack smiled a warm smile that surprisingly put Harper at ease.

"Oh.. Well, I never thought of that before. Don't be." Her comment was ripe with sarcasm.

Jack chuckled. "Drinks help. Come on." He got up and started closing her files.

"What? Oh , no… I-"

"A group went down to Shaunessy's about an hour ago. We're late."

Harper soon learned that women rarely say no to Jack McCoy, regardless of the situation. They shared a cab to the bar. Harper usually found making small talk to be a laborious task at best, but surprisingly with Jack the conversation seemed to flow and when it didn't the silence seemed to be a comfortable one. Before long they were walking into the warmth of the bar. Connie was glad to see Harper had decided to join them. She had been asked a number of times, but had always declined. As she and Jack took their seats (he between Mike Cutter and another A.D.A. and she between Connie and a Detective Cyrus Lupo) Harper was very conscious of a few sideways glances at her and Jack. After much prodding Connie had filled Harper in on Jack's reputation. It was just the sort of thing Harper wanted to steer clear of. Though she found this reputation of his hard to believe. It was probably just idol gossip.

Jack always enjoyed these nights out with his prosecutors and friends. Even now that he was D.A. he wouldn't trade these nights for any dinner in any four-star restaurant in town. He was pleased Harper had join them. He had noticed her lack of socializing and it worried him. He knew as well as anybody that too many nights alone with your caseload was unhealthy.

He found himself watching Harper throughout the night. Not so much that it was noticeable, but whenever given the opportunity he'd steal glances at her. She was an attractive young woman. Her frame was small, probably around 5'1" maybe 110 lbs. Petite, but she still had curves in all the right places. Her brown hair was long, presumably she always wore it up one way or another. He could tell Harper was shy, but tried to cover it up with wit, sarcasm, and healthy dose of levity. She hid it well except whenever something would catch her off guard her cheeks would flush just a couple of shades pinker than normal. He wondered if others noticed this, or was it just a sign he was paying way too much attention to someone entirely too young.

Harper was definitely having a hard time concentrating. Between Jack McCoy across the table and Cyrus Lupo next to her she clung to cohesive thought like it was the edge of a cliff. She was well aware of Cyrus' flirting though she got the impression he thought he was being subtle. With his arm around the back of the chair he'd occasionally lean in and whisper into her ear. His breath on her neck was very distracting. Strangely enough the more Cyrus flirted with her the more acutely aware she was of Jack across the table. Just as in the cab earlier he conversed easily with his companions. She admired that ability in anyone. McCoy moved in and out of two or three conversations at a time with ease as if it were a graceful dance. His smile was nice. She didn't think she'd ever seen him smile. It was sincere. He should definitely do it more often.

Cyrus asked her to dance. After a couple of requests she finally relented. The bar's small dance space was pretty crowed, so she allowed him to pull her closer than she normally would have. He towered over her making her feel much smaller than her five feet. His hands were strong around her small waist and she was thankful she'd only had a couple of beers. Otherwise she may have been tempted to get to know Detective Lupo much better.

When Harper and Cyrus returned from the dance floor the flush on her cheeks was quite apparent. She was laughing and seemed more carefree than Jack had ever seen her. She wore it well. She look at him as she took her seat. Jack, never being one to shy away from eye contact with a woman, smiled and held her gaze. She quickly looked away, softly touching her now crimson cheeks.

Deciding she'd had enough fun for the night Harper rose to gather her belongings. Her movement was quickly mimicked by Cyrus. "Can I take you home?"

Harper was taken aback by the question. She blushed and thought she saw Jack, who was chatting with Mike, stiffen and glance her way. Cyrus had a sweet smile. It was very hard to resist, but Harper was far to practical to fall for a boyish smile.

"Why Detective Lupo, what kind of a girl do you think I am?" Her tone was teasing and her smile a bit flirty. "Well, to tell you the truth, _I_ don't know what kind of a girl I am. But what I'm not," she looked at him with an earnest smile, " is a girl that goes home with a strange man after three beers."

With his lips in a crooked smile he started to defend himself. "Well I just thought…."

"You have to give me tequila for that!" She winked and he smiled knowing all his hopes of an after party were dashed.

Jack's chuckle gave away his eavesdropping. He glanced at Harper who flashed him a Cheshire Cat grin. As much as he hated to admit it, Jack was jealous. It wasn't often he was jealous of other men where women were concerned. He's had his fair share of success with women. He didn't see the logic in it, but that's what it was pure green eyed jealousy. Just as perplexing was the relief he felt when Harper turned Lupo down on his offer. Why should he care if she took Cyrus Lupo home? She was an adult, she could do as she pleased. He was basically a good guy from what Jack could tell. But he knew he'd have been a little disappointed if they'd left together.

Harper made the rounds saying goodnight to everyone. She made a point to say thank you to Jack for insisting she come. He grinned. The look they shared made Harper feel like they had a secret, a secret only they knew. It was comforting and made her stomach do sommersaults at the same time.

Walking out she was overwhelmed with confusion. Normally in this situation Harper would look back at the man she'd spent her evening with-a final flirtatious look. But in that instance she didn't know whom she'd look at: Cyrus or Jack? She knew she should look at Cyrus. He was handsome, smart, a genuinely nice guy, age appropriate, and most importantly _not her boss_. In the end she didn't look back. She knew if she did her eyes would be drawn to Jack McCoy just as they had been all night long.

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**As always, critics and comments are always welcome!!**

**Thanks!!**


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

"Docket 101-607, People v. Ronald Seymour, the charge is aggravated assault in the 1st degree and criminal use of a firearm in the 1st degree."

"How do you plea Mr. Seymour?" Judge Arthur Cohen was his usual dry self.

"Not guilty, Your Honor."

"Miss VanMeter?"

"Your Honor, the people request remand. Mr. Seymour has history of violent crimes and is facing 25 years. Not only is he a flight risk, but most importantly he's a threat to the public." Harper knew remand was a stretch, but she thought she might as well go for it.

"Your Honor," public defender Peter Fetzer's tone was incredulous, "Mr. Seymour has significant ties to the community. He's not going anywhere. Remand is excessive."

"Excessive? Judge, Mr. Seymour's alleged victim is at Mercy General in a coma. She may never wake up."

"OK then, she'll be safe in her hospital bed Miss VanMeter. Bale is set at $50,000. Next…"

Harper knew she hadn't really 'lost' the bale dispute. There was no way Ronald Seymour we be able to make bail that high, but the result still stung a little.

As she gathered her belongings Fetzer approached her. "Better watch out. Looks like you're in trouble…" He glanced toward the back of the crowded courtroom. Harper followed his gaze to D.A. Jack McCoy leaned up against the far wall. Fetzer had a Cheshire Cat grin on his face. She shrugged nonchalantly. "Or maybe 'Don Juan' McCoy has taken a liking to you." Fetzer snickered, not knowing how close he was to the truth.

"Get your mind out of the gutter, Fetzer." Harper started towards the back of the courtroom, towards Jack.

"Oh, counselor…" Fetzer tapped her on the shoulder with the familiar folded blue paper of a motion notice. "My motion to suppress the gun." He glanced over her shoulder at McCoy and grinned, "Be good…."

Annoyed she took the notice and continued toward Jack.

"Harper."

"Jack." She held up the folded paper.

"Motion to suppress." He wasn't asking a question.

"How'd you know?" He _always _knew-it could be very irritating.

"I'm wise and learned." He smiled his crooked smile and snatched the motion from her hand. Over the last couple weeks that smile had been known to make Harper's heart skip a beat or two on more than one occasion.

The two walked through the courthouse discussing her case against Seymour. Harper was sliding into the role of apt pupil with ease. She'd always found it difficult to accept help from others, but once she knew McCoy respected her and her abilities as a prosecutor she found it easier. On the other hand all the one-on-one time with him wasn't helping her little crush. More than once she'd actually_ forgotten_ what she was saying mid-sentence when he'd leaned over her shoulder. She was learning a lot from him and she appreciated the mentoring. She just wished it didn't have to be a the expense of her blood pressure.

"So you're sure it's solid?" Jack and Harper had made their way outside the courthouse. He spotted a hot dog vendor and headed that way.

"Without a doubt." Her voice rang with the enthusiasm that Jack had become so fond of. He motioned for two dogs from the vendor while Harper continued about the case.

"Harper…" she was jarred our of her tirade. Jack smiled, "What do you want on your's?"

She blushed at her own aloofness. "Oh… kraut."

Jack dressed his with mustard and walked toward a bench. Adding mustard to hers Harper quickly followed and continued her argument for dismissal of the suppression motion. "OK, OK. I'm sold. You're solid." He held his hands up in defeat. He'd enjoyed the time he'd spent with Harper over the last two weeks. He'd forgotten what it was like to be young and excited about the law. Teaching his A.D.A.s always gave him a lot of satisfaction and Harper was a good student. She soaked up everything he had to say like a sponge. That's not to say she always agreed with him and she certainly let him know it when she didn't, but she was eager to understand every aspect of everything.

"Mustard, huh?" She peeked over at his half eaten lunch. He continued to chew looking at her quizzically. "I once read an article about personality traits in correlation to hot dog toppings." She smiled and took a bite of her own lunch.

"And?"

"Mustard… laid-back, easily satisfied, doesn't mind if their partner takes charge…" she glanced up as he raised his eyebrows and smiled, "flexible by nature."

"And does that sound like me, counselor?" He had an amused twinkle in his eye.

"I'm not sure. I don't know you that well, Jack." She smiled and of course blushed which was pretty much permanent when Jack was around.

"And what did your article say about kraut and mustard?" he said eyeing her disappearing lunch. He enjoyed the teasing nature their conversation had taken. They stood and continued their walk to One Hogan Place.

"Loyal, dedicated… introverted, a love of routine."

"Well," Jack tried his best to sound surprised, "there may be some validity to this hot dog science after all."

Harper smiled at his teasing, "And you think you know me so well, Mr. McCoy?"

Jack stopped and turned to face Harper, shoved his hands in his pockets, and bent down slightly as to look her in the eyes. "Miss VanMeter, you may be smart, quick witted, sharp tongued and beautiful to boot, but you, my dear, are hardly an enigma to an old hand like me." With a wink he turned and continued towards his office building. He was bluffing of course. She _was_ an enigma to him. Much to his dismay his attraction to Harper was growing by leaps and bounds. He knew he should distance himself. He'd been in this situation before and knew he could, but for some reason he just couldn't seem to stay away from this woman.

Despite the cool winter air she was suddenly very warm. A part of her wanted to be offended, there were plenty of men who thought she was an enigma. As much as she wanted to she couldn't be mad for one simple fact: he called her beautiful. Jack McCoy just called her beautiful _and_ winked at her. She'd always been a sucker for a winking man.

They walked the rest of the way in silence. Harper finally spoke on the elevator.

"Are you going to Connie's tonight?"

The office had been abuzz all week about Connie's party. She'd just moved into a new apartment in Tribeca and had invited the whole floor over for a housewarming. Harper usually dreaded such events, but the possibility of socializing with Jack had kept her anticipation high.

Her big brown eyes tugged at what was left of Jack's heart strings. They reminded him of a puppy dog you couldn't say 'no' to.

"Of course. I wouldn't miss it." Truthfully, he had only planned on stopping by for a moment and had almost talked himself out of that. "You?" He tried not to sound too interested.

"Uh huh. I'm going over early to help her get everything ready." Knowing Jack was going to be there calmed her nerves about all the possible hurdles the night may hold. She didn't understand it, but just being around him seemed to settle the chaos she felt inside.

The elevator stopped at their floor. They exited and each headed their separate ways.

"Thanks for lunch. I guess I'll see you tonight," her shy smile saying much more than she'd intended.

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"I don't know, Connie. It's shorter than I thought." Harper noticed the whining tone in her voice and tried to tone it down.

"Come out, let me see!" Connie had been trying to coax her friend out of the bathroom for five minutes now. It was hard to believe she was really this self-conscious.

Harper walked out of the bathroom and Connie was floored. She looked amazing! She wore a jersey dress, chocolate brown, very simple with short sleeves, a v-neck that showed just enough cleavage and a hem that stopped about an inch longer than indecent . The outfit was finished off by a very smart pair of brown knee high boots. She wore her light brown hair down. Connie had never seen Harper with her hair down. It was long about three inches below her shoulders and it had a slight wave to it. She quickly soothed her friend's frazzled nerves. Harper was never one to have many friends so the friendship she and Connie had developed meant a lot to her. Connie assured her she looked great and teasingly reminded her that a certain Detective Lupo would be in attendance tonight.

Harper and Cyrus had gone out once since their meeting two weeks ago. He called her up a few days after Shaunessy's. They'd gone to dinner and then caught a Buster Keaton film festival in Central Park. They had a good time, but he hadn't called since and she really hadn't been inclined to do so either. She told herself it wasn't the right time to start a relationship and left it at that.

Soon guests began arriving and within an hour Connie's apartment was full of her colleagues and friends. Harper was proud of her attempts at mingling, helping Connie keep up with drinks and other guest courtesies helped. Regardless of how busy she kept herself she never failed to hold her breath whenever the doorbell rang. She seemed to be setting herself up for disappointment.

"Looking for someone?" Cyrus' deep voice whispered in her ear.

She was startled, not having seen him come in. "Hey… no. Why?"

"You nearly break your neck every time that bell rings." He smiled a cocky smile like he knew a secret.

They fell into an easy conversation with a couple of other guests and Harper actually began to enjoy herself. She must have been on her third glass of wine by the time Jack walked in the door. She tried to not pay too much attention to him being greeted by Connie and the others, but it was futile. She hoped it wasn't too obvious to her companions. They made eye contact across the room and when he smiled a silent 'hello' Harper thought her knees were going to go out from under her. Connie walked through on her way to the bedroom with Jack's coat and asked if she'd mind getting him a vodka on the rocks. Harper was relieved at the chance for a breather. She excused herself from the group and headed towards the kitchen to make the drink.

"Is that for me?"

Recognizing Jack's smiling voice behind her, she exhaled quietly before speaking. "It is," she smiled and turned towards him, "would you like a lime?"

"Yes, please." Jack had to catch his breath when Harper turned around. She looked remarkable. He knew he shouldn't have come tonight. This whole 'staying away' thing just got a lot harder. Her cheeks blushed at his obviously positive assessment of her appearance. "Connie's place is nice." Jack knew he should at least glance around the apartment when saying this, but he couldn't take his eyes off of her and he was pretty certain it was beginning to be noticeable.

"Yeah, it's great. She got a good deal from what I understand."

She was well aware of Jack's attention. Harper's insides were beginning to ache and the tension in the air was palpable. Seemingly unable to control her actions she started to take a step closer to Jack. She didn't have a plan, but she couldn't take it any longer.

"There you two are!" Connie came jubilantly into the room, stopping Harper in her tracks. "Jack, I want to introduce you to someone," she locked her arm inside his and turned to Harper, "and I think Cyrus is looking for you."

At the mention of Detective Lupo Jack looked at Harper with a knowing grin and raised his expressive eyebrows. He also felt like he'd been kicked in the gut.

Their paths crossed several times in the next half hour. Gratefully, by their own design or not, they both seemed to settle within the same group of people: Connie, Harper, Cyrus and his partner Kevin, Mike, Jack, and two other A.D.A.s. They all conversed back and forth about one subject or another. Harper was just glad to be close to Jack without having to worry about controlling her actions. Kevin's phone rang with the news he and his partner had to go. Cyrus making a deliberate display put his hand on Harper's waist.

"I'll call you OK?"

"Yeah." He bent down and quickly kissed her on the cheek as he headed toward the door. She smiled and felt flustered by the surprise contact. Everyone in the group took notice and she literally thought she was going to die of embarrassment. Harper excused herself to the kitchen in hopes of catching her breath and calming her nerves.

"You OK?"

Jack. She poured herself a small glass of vodka and turned to face him. He smiled sincerely and she immediately felt better.

"Of course." She sipped her drink.

"Detective Lupo seems nice…."

She couldn't be sure, but she thought she saw him roll his eyes slightly.

"Yeah… he is. He's really great."

Her answer was drawn out and Jack wasn't sure if she was trying to convince him or herself. He got his answer.

"He is…. It's just…," she sighed. "It's... it's complicated." She tried not to let her look linger to long, but looking away from his kind eyes was difficult to say the least. She took another sip from her glass.

"Well, I'm not really one to give relationship advice. Just… listen to your gut."

He took a step closer and Harper thought she was going to start hyperventilating. He reached over and gently took her drink from her hand and smiled perceptively at her. Without taking his eyes off of her he turned the glass upright, drained it, and set it on the counter. Then he turned and walked out of the kitchen.

An hour later Harper decide to call it a night. The party was still going strong, but she'd already had too much to drink and staying any longer would make the morning just that much harder. She headed to Connie's bedroom to get her things and found Jack rummaging through a pile of coats on the bed.

"Leaving so soon?" She'd startled him unintentionally.

"Yes. I hadn't intended to stay so long."

"Well I'm glad you did." Harper was immediately mortified when she realized what she'd said, "I mean.. I.. I know Connie really appreciates it."

Jack smiled at her stumbling words. He knew she'd had too much to drink. "You seem to be going somewhere yourself."

Harper slung her bag over her shoulder. "Yeah, it's late." She gathered her courage, "Mind if I walk out with you?" Normally she would worry what others would think of their leaving at the same time, but at this point in the evening she didn't care.

"I've never been the one to turn down the company of an attractive woman." Jack only wished he could blame his flirting on too much alcohol. She blushed and he smiled knowing he'd caused the sudden color in her cheeks. He knew he was treading on dangerous ground.

They each quietly said their goodbyes. Thankfully there were still plenty of people in the apartment so their leaving together was really only noticeable to Mike and Connie.

They silently rode the elevator to the lobby. Jack leaned against the side wall openly watching Harper with a smile. He commented on the amount of people who'd come and Harper agreed the turnout was excellent. She was well aware of his eyes on her and she delighted in acting as if she didn't notice.

"Not riding your motorcycle tonight?" she asked casually.

"No. Not tonight."

"That's too bad." She smiled and looked over at him.

He chuckled lightly at her bravery.

His smile touched his eyes and she relished it. When the doors opened he put his hand over the doors allowing her to exit first, as always. They casually walked out into the cold night air.

"Where do you live?" he inquired.

"The East Village on East 16th. You?"

"Upper East Side, share a cab?"

Harper was relieved just be able to spend a little more time with him. "Sure."

Jack briskly walked up to the curb to hail a cab while Harper hung back closer to the building out of the cold air. Out of the corner of her eye she was suddenly aware of someone standing there. She glanced at him trying to decide if he'd been a fellow guest at Connie's, deciding quickly that he hadn't.

"Got a light?" he asked quietly.

"No, sorry." She didn't feel very comfortable talking to the stranger and Jack's words to her earlier in the night seemed to be ringing in her ears. _Trust your gut…._

"Hey.. I know that guy… from the papers. Is that Jack McCoy? The D.A.?"

She stared straight ahead, "Yes." Her answer was barely audible.

"You his girlfriend?" The stranger snickered ever so lightly.

"No, he's my boss." She wanted to walk away, whether it was fear or the alcohol her feet didn't seem to be working.

"Hmm.. Well good night." With that the stranger left and the tension in the air seemed to ease slightly.

Before Harper could regain her composure a masked man grabbed her from behind. With his hand over her mouth he drug her into the shelter of the nearby bushes. Grabbing her by the upper arms he slammed her against a concrete column. Her head bounced off of the concrete and she was suddenly unable to focus on anything around her. She tried to scream, but his hand easily stopped any attempt. The assailant gripped her throat tightly with one hand and produced a large knife from his jacket with the other. He held it up to Harper's face menacingly running it along her cheek.

"I've got a message for your_ boss_…." His breath was hot on her face and she instinctively tried to recoil from it. She tried in vain to focus on any detail she could, knowing it would be valuable later.

"Tell McCoy, it would be to his advantage not to go nosing around in Sal Misiano's business. It could be detrimental to the health of those around him."

His knife slowly moved down the outside of her knee-length trench coat. She shivered in fear, making her assailant laugh in response. Suddenly she felt the cold blade of his knife on the inside of her thigh and she began to struggle harder against his advances. He tightened his grip on her throat and slammed her head against the column again. Her head pounded in pain and she was suddenly aware of warm sensation running down her back. Blood. She struggled not to panic and stay conscious.

"And believe me, I would love to come back and pay you a visit."

He quickly and expertly used his knife to cut her underwear off. He tightened his grip on her throat and she began to lose consciousness.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

"You're lucky," the ER doctor continued to suture the gash on the back of Harper's head, "this is pretty deep and head wounds bleed a lot, but it's not too serious."

Harper winced, she didn't feel lucky. Of course, she knew things could have been much worse. The thought alone made her skin crawl. She looked at Jack sitting a couple of feet away. He watched her carefully, in fact he hadn't let her out of his sight since he'd discovered her in the shrubs outside Connie's apartment building.

"Of course, we'd like to admit you for observation. You've got a pretty severe concussion."

"No, that's not necessary. I'm OK." The only thing that could make this night worse would be a stay in the hospital.

Jack started to protest.

She looked him straight in the eyes, "No." There was no way she was budging on this.

Jack let her win this battle. He was just relieved she wasn't harmed any worse. His mind was still reeling from the night's events. How could this have happened? He'd left her alone for only a minute. He couldn't get the image of her lying on the pavement, blood flowing from her wounded head out of his mind. Worse than the sight of her lying there was the sound she made. It was like a cross between a moan and a whimper. He'd heard his mother make that sound many times. It _still_ made every nerve in his body stand on end.

"OK, then," the doctor seemed a little perturbed at her refusal, "you can't be alone tonight. You'll need to be woke up every two hours for an assessment. Just answer a couple of questions. You know, 'What's your name?', 'What's the date?', 'How many fingers am I holding up?' that sort of thing." He glanced at Jack.

He nodded.

Harper's already nauseated stomach got worse. She hated being fussed over, the idea of all the attention sickened her. Her head started swimming and she broke out in a cold sweat. She must have wavered in her position on the exam table because the doctor reached out and steadied her. He suggested she lie back. That was fine with her, all she wanted to do was go to sleep. She wondered if it was the concussion or just the fact that it was almost 2 in the morning.

The cold cushion was a welcome sensation on her hot cheek. She wanted nothing more than to close her eyes, but had the irrational fear that she wouldn't open them again if she did. So she clung to the only real thing in the room: Jack. She laid there in the cold, sterile, homogenous ER exam room watching Jack McCoy watch her. The knots in her stomach began to fade and the fog in her head cleared. She forgot about the nurses flitting in and out, the people swarming outside the door, or the police that were sure to come in wanting her statement. It was just them and she was fine with that.

She didn't remember falling asleep, but she must have. One minute she was lying there staring at Jack in a comfortable silence and the next thing she knew he was standing at the door with Lupo and Bernard. They were speaking in hushed tones, all with concerned looks on their faces. Kevin was holding something in his hand - an evidence bag. It's contents were all too familiar to her. Their concerned looks became clear and her stomach knotted in dread over the coming conversation.

She raised from her prone position too quickly and her head pounded in response. "He didn't rape me." Her voice was raspy and dry. She tried to look as confident as she could. "He just cut them off… that's all."

Cyrus came to her side. "How are you feeling? He sympathetically put is arm around her shoulder.

Harper quickly recoiled from his touch, then immediately shot him an apologetic look. "Sorry…. I'm fine, really. Just a little banged up." She gave him the best reassuring smile she could muster.

"You didn't mention it earlier," Cyrus said sympathetically as he motioned to the evidence bag. Harper thought she detected a hint of skepticism in his tone.

"I guess I forgot. Everything's been a little hazy." That was lie. She hadn't forgotten. She was just trying to delay the unpleasant conversation. Hoping, maybe, at that point Jack wouldn't be around.

Bernard took out his notebook and pen. "Well, maybe we should go over everything again."

Jack, ever vigilant, resumed his post in the chair against the wall as Harper recounted her conversation with the strange man outside the building. He wanted to kick himself - he didn't even notice someone standing there. Hearing the story again only made him angrier. He tried to keep his composure, but the thought of someone grabbing her just yards from him was almost more than he could take.

"And the man that grabbed you, did he say anything?"

Harper hesitated and glanced at Jack. She looked away from his questioning gaze. "Yes, he did." Harper hated to do this to him. "He said to tell my…," she swallowed hard, "to tell my boss to stay out of Sal Misiano's business." She looked reluctantly at Jack. "He said it could be dangerous… for the people around him."

Jack felt like he'd had all the air knocked out of him. This was his fault. This had happened to her because she was with him. How could he have been so careless?

He took a deep breath in an attempt to get a handle on his emotions, "Is that all he said?"

The look he gave Harper was cold - nothing like she'd become accustom to. She held his gaze as her eyes began to moisten with tears. She bit her lip in an effort to contain them, "He said he'd like to pay me a visit."

At that, the room seemed to erupt in chaos. Cyrus was immediately on his phone to Van Buren, Jack practically leapt from his chair shouting something about a protection detail to Bernard. Bernard seemed to be the only one who took it all in stride. In the mist of all the commotion Connie came in to check on her. Too much was going on Harper couldn't concentrate on anything. Connie asked her something, she wasn't sure what. Her head began to throb.

"EVERYONE SHUT THE HELL UP!"

They all looked at her in shock.

"OK…" Her head felt like it was going to explode. "I don't _want _nor do I _need_ a protection detail." They all began to protest before Harper cut them off. "No. I don't want to hear it. I will not let this - this _incident_ affect my life."

Cyrus stepped closer to her, his boyish smile already affixed to his face. "Harper…"

"You're smile's not that cute Cyrus. No." Astonishingly all this arguing was making her feel almost normal.

Jack'd had enough. "This isn't up for debate Harper."

"It's my life, Jack. I'm not scared."

"Well you should be!" His eyes were large and he was getting very agitated.

Harper scoffed. "You're being a little overly dramatic, don't you think?"

It took all he had not to explode, but he understood where she was coming from. He knew he'd be acting the same way if their situations were reversed. However, he also knew he had to get a handle on this situation or she'd actually think she was in control here.

He, as calmly as he could, leaned in to within inches of her face, his hands on either side of her.

It dawned on her this was the closest they've ever been. Her head started to swim and this time she knew it had nothing to do with her concussion.

"Listen here, these people are not street thugs. They are professionals. They are serious. And there is no way in hell you are leaving this hospital without a protection detail."

Harper smiled and began to interject with a witty comment.

"You're smile's not that cute, counselor. End of discussion."

Harper sat there, quietly resigned to Jack's demands. Everyone buzzed around her. Jack arranged for Connie to stay at Harper's, so she left to get an overnight bag. Cyrus and Bernard were both in and out with questions and more questions. Jack sat at his post. Her head was beginning to feel better, but all the commotion didn't help.

"Talk to me," she requested quietly.

He smiled the warm smile she'd come to know. "What about?"

She shrugged. "Just talk to me. Not _at_ me."

Jack's brow furrowed and he pursed his lips in thought. "What's your favorite book?"

She chuckled, even she knew that was a lame attempt at conversation. "Night by Elie Wiesel. Do you know it?" Her eyelids were heavy with fatigue.

"I do. Interesting choice. The question is: did you read it before it was in Oprah's Book Club or after?" He smiled, glad they had the opportunity for light banter.

She laughed wincing at the pain it caused her. "Don't underestimate me Jack," wagging her finger in disapproval. "And how do you know what's in Oprah's Book Club?"

He shrugged feigning innocence.

After a while her detail arrived. Connie came in shortly later. Everyone was watching her again. She wanted nothing more than to be alone in her apartment stretched out in her bed. Doctors came in and out with instructions for both her and Connie. As she stepped down from the exam table she stumbled. Jack quickly wrapped his arm around her for stability. She leaned into his support, sliding effortlessly in the crook of his arm. The action didn't go unnoticed by Detective Lupo. Harper hated to be so inconsiderate of his feelings, but she just couldn't worry about that right now. She couldn't explain it, but Jack seemed to be the only thing concrete around her.

* * *

Her apartment was a welcomed sight. It seemed like it'd been days since she was last there. She was glad to have Connie staying over. As much as she hated to admit it, now that she was here, she didn't like the idea of being alone.

Harper sat exhausted and overwhelmed. "I can't believe Jack put police officers outside my door. It's crazy."

Connie smiled at her friend's persistent denial of the situation. "Cut him some slack. He only wants to keep you safe. For all intents and purposes we're his family."

"I can't believe you're taking his side," her tone was playful and not at offended.

"Seriously. He's protective and given what happened to Alex Borgia… we're lucky he doesn't have armed guards following us at all times."

"Alex Borgia? Who's he?" Harper was always eager to learn something new about Jack.

"_She_ was Jack's assistant before me. She was working on a case and one day she disappeared. She turned up a few days later in the trunk of a car."

Harper was speechless. It seemed so strange to her. Every time she heard a story about Jack, whether it was a daughter he didn't speak to, affairs that ended badly, or as in this instance a colleague that was murdered, it was always sad or tragic in some way. It made her feel for him. She wished he were here because she had the sudden urge to give him a hug.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Jack spent what was left of the night in his living room going over files on the Misiano case. He'd been assisting the state Attorney General's office on a RICO charge against, Sal Misiano, the notorious the mob boss. They'd been at an impasse a couple of months ago and reached out. After some digging it turned out The People had a man, Christopher Romano, in Riker's awaiting trial on extortion charges, that could be of some use to them. Jack had met earlier in the week with Mr. Romano and his attorney to discuss a plea in return for testifying for the AG.

Jack glanced at his watch, "6 o'clock…." He called the Department of Corrections over two hours ago wanting records of Mr. Romano's visitors since Tuesday.

Leaning back on his sofa he rubbed his stubbled jaw. He was tired, exhausted actually. He wanted to sleep, but every time he closed his eyes he was bombarded with images he couldn't shake. The night's _incident_, as Harper put it, had stirred up a lot in him. When he closed his eyes all he could see were flashes: Harper lying, bleeding on the pavement, drifting in and out of consciousness; Alex bound and bloody in the trunk of that car; Claire lifeless and angelic in her coffin; his mother backed into a corner, cowering from his father's next assault. All the while Harper's whimper/moan played endlessly in his ears. No, sleep would not find him, not yet. The only thing he wanted more than sleep was a drink, but that too would elude him for the time being. He needed to keep his head clear. Get to the bottom on this first, then he'd have a good, stiff drink and a nice, long sleep.

A couple of hours and several cups of coffee later there was a knock at Jack's door.

"Jesus, Jack. You look like hell." Mike Cutter walked into the Upper East Side townhouse Jack had inhabited for the last two years.

"Thanks."

Mike surveyed the files strewn about the place. "Have you slept at all?"

"A little."

A lie and Mike knew it. He'd gotten to know Jack pretty well and was beginning to be able to spot a lie when he heard one. Though given his current condition, anyone would have been able to spot _that_ one. Mike pulled a file from his leather briefcase and waved it in the air.

Jack was suddenly energized, "What'd you find?" He eagerly took the file from Cutter's hands and began thumbing through the papers.

"Romano had five visits between Tuesday and Friday. Three were his attorney, one was his girlfriend, and the last one was a guy named Jimmy DiCillo. That's his wrapsheet there. Mostly petty larceny, a couple of solicitation charges, but," Mike reached over and pointed to a spot on the sheet, "there is one instance of aggravated assault and armed robbery. And look at the weapon, Jack."

"A knife."

Mike shrugged, "I don't know, maybe Romano's trying to get back in Misiano's good graces. It's not much, but it's something. The 2-7 is putting together a book. Maybe this guy, the one needing the light, has a record and Harper can pick him out."

"It's a shot," Jack rose from his seat looking at his watch for the hundredth time, "I'm going to take a shower. We'll head over to Harper's in little bit. There's coffee in the kitchen, help yourself to anything."

* * *

An hour later Jack and Mike arrived at Harper's door. Flanked on either side were the officers who had escorted her home a few hours earlier. Connie answered looking a little worse for wear, but not bad considering the night she'd had.

"Is she up?" Jack entered the apartment and looked at his watch, again.

"Yes, _she's_ up," Harper answered as she came in from the kitchen.

Jack looked unexpectedly at her. He didn't think she'd be awake yet. It was 9 a.m. - she couldn't have gotten more than four or five hours of sleep. She was in a light weight robe with pajama bottoms and a tank top underneath. Her hair was piled in a messy bun atop her head and to his surprise she donned a pair of glasses. She looked astonishingly refreshed. In fact, if it weren't for the small cut above her right eye and the nasty bruise on her cheek one might mistake her for a slumber party attendee.

Holding up her large mug she asked, "Coffee?"

She smiled, hoping her battered face wouldn't be too much of a shock. She'd been visibly banged up last night, but in the hours since she'd come home a very large bruise had developed on her right cheek, not to mention the ones around her neck had become a much deeper purple. She was, however, taken aback by Jack's appearance. He looked haggard and weary. She could tell he'd cleaned up and shaved, but that could only do so much. For the first time since she'd known him she thought he looked his age.

"No, I've had enough. You should still be sleeping."

"Mike? There's plenty." She ignored Jack's comment, but his look was persistent. "What? How am I supposed to sleep with Connie waking me up every two hours?" She looked at Connie with faux annoyance and winked. "But hey," she chuckled, "it could be worse, I could be dead." She mentally winced knowing she'd gone too far.

Connie looked at her in shock. How could she say such a thing after what she had told her about Alex?

"Harper…" Jack's brow furrowed and he rubbed his jaw in fatigue. "Can you for once take this seriously?!" His tone was raised and harsh enough to wipe the smile from Harper's face.

"Jack…," Connie said disparagingly. She knew Harper was in the wrong, but she'd been through a lot and his severity was excessive.

Harper felt like she'd been kicked in the gut. "Mike? Did you want that coffee?"

"Uh.. Yeah, thanks."

"I'll get it," Connie interjected and headed toward the kitchen.

Without saying a word Mike followed her out of the room. The tension in the room was tangible and he wanted no part of it.

"Harper…"

"Don't." She looked up at Jack her face had lost most of its color and her eyes were wounded. "I'm sorry…"

"I shouldn't -"

"But you've got to understand - this is how I deal with things. I know it's not ideal." She tried to make her voice sound as strong as possible, but feared she was failing. "I'm hanging on by a thread here, Jack," her eyes began to fill with tears and the chuckle in her voice trembled, "you've got to give me something." Harper smiled and the tears in her eyes spilled over onto her cheeks.

Her plea made Jack's heart ache. He wanted nothing more than to tell her everything was going to be OK, to assure her that he'd take care of everything and that nothing would stop him from keeping her safe.

"I'm sorry." Ultimately, he was a man of few words.

Harper nodded as she wiped her cheeks dry. "Thank you."

"They want you to go down to the 2-7 and look over some perp books. Do you feel up to it?"

He exuded kindness with no hint of insincerity. For that, Harper was grateful. "Of course. I'll go change." Harper took a couple of steps towards her bedroom before turning to Jack with a wicked grin firmly painted on her pretty face. "You guys can come back in now," she called towards the kitchen. She looked at Jack mischievously and rolled her eyes before heading towards her room.

Mike and Jack brought Connie up to speed on the days planned events. While Harper looked over books at the precinct they would do some investigating into Jimmy DiCillo's past and pay Christopher Romano a visit at Riker's. In the course of their planning Harper's phone rang.

"Can you get that?" she shouted from her bedroom.

Mike reached over and picked up the ringing receiver. "Hello? Yeah, may I ask who's calling?" His eyebrows raised in slight surprise, "OK, let me get her."

Harper opened the door to her room and looked expectantly at him as he pulled the phone from his ear.

"It's your mother." he whispered.

She looked at her company, silently mouthing a few choice obscenities. Harper's head suddenly began to pound. This was not a conversation she wanted to have now. She'd hoped they'd get some things squared away before she had to tell her family of her traumatic happenings.

She took a deep breath before beginning, "Hey Mama."

Her co-workers were surprised by the sudden twang in her voice.

"No, that was Mike. He's a friend." She smiled and winked Mike's way. "No, Mama he's not that kind of friend. We work together." She knew they were getting way too much enjoyment out of this and decided to retreat to her room.

A few minutes later Harper emerged from her room phone still affixed to her ear. She walked directly to Jack, a patient smile on her face. "Yes, ma'am. Uh-huh. Hold on a sec, OK?" Pulling the phone down and covering the receiver with her hand she looked up desperately at Jack. "You've got to talk to her," her southern drawl magically gone.

He smiled amusingly, "What?"

"You have to talk to her." She sighed pushing the receiver his way. "Tell her I'm fine. She doesn't believe me. If you don't she's getting on a plane and coming here… _today._ And believe me, that's something none of us need right now."

Jack hesitantly took the phone from Harper and cleared his throat. "Mrs. VanMeter? This is Jack McCoy. Yes, ma'am. I assure you, Harper's fine. Well - well, yes, y - yes ma'am."

Harper scoffed. Her mother had an disconcerting quality that even Jack McCoy couldn't withstand.

"Armed police officers, yes ma'am. I promise you," Jack paused and looked at Harper, "we won't let anything happen to her."

It's significance was lost on their friends, but Harper's heart swelled knowing Jack really meant _I. _She hoped her blushing cheeks would also go unnoticed by them. After saying his goodbyes to Harper's mother he handed her the phone and she did the same.

"OK, Mama. Tell Daddy I love him. OK, I'll call y'all tonight, I promise. Bye-Bye." She turned around to find her friends smiling in pleasure. "Shut up."

"That's quite an accent you have there, Counselor."

Connie reached over and lightly slapped Mike's arm. "Leave her alone, Mike," adding condescendingly, "it's cute."

Jack chuckled "OK, that's enough… _y'all._" The trio stifled their sniggers as best they could.

Harper looked at Jack disparagingly, "Et tu?"


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

"They're all beginning to look the same…."

Harper groaned to no one in particular. She was, after all, alone in the room. It'd been seven hours. Seven hours of mug shots, too strong coffee, greasy pizza, and more strong coffee and Harper wasn't any closer to identifying the mystery man from Connie's building. Her head hurt, her ass hurt, hell, her entire body hurt. She got up, walked around the room, and stretched her sore muscles. She kept going over the events again and again. There had to be something, something she wasn't remembering. This was easily the most aggravating thing she'd ever experienced.

Jack walked into the interrogation room without being noticed. He smiled, if he hadn't known better he'd have thought Harper was practicing a summation. She paced around the small room, mumbling, arms slightly flailing in different directions.

"How's it going?"

Harper turned around to find Jack a few feet away. His eyes were smiling at her and she felt their calming influence immediately.

"Don't ask," she chuckled.

"Well," he walked over and absently thumbed the pages of one of the books, "maybe he's not in here. Did you eat?"

She nodded.

"Well, I think it's time to call it a day. Let me take you home."

Harper suddenly felt the weight of the long day wash over her. "OK."

* * *

"Connie should be over later… maybe." Harper smiled impishly, "She has a date."

Jack nodded detecting her inferred meaning.

"She wanted to cancel, but I insisted she go. She's already cancelled on him twice. He's a detective - from Major Cases."

Jack was studying the cluster of framed photos on the apartment's wall. "Mm… you ladies and your cops." He grinned her way.

The fact that he lumped her into the generalization made her feel a little wounded. "Yeah, well, the necessities of life, right?" She smirked trying not to let the injury show. "Anyhow, his name's Mike something. Logan, Mike Logan."

Jack looked at her, his eyebrows raised in surprise. "Really?"

"Yeah, you know him?"

"We've crossed paths a few times…."

Jack didn't elaborate, so Harper took the opportunity to change the subject. As much as she loved Connie, she didn't want to spend the rest of the night talking about her date. She walked over to her iPod dock and turned on one of her mellower playlists for background noise. While she got Jack a drink he brought her up to speed on her colleagues' progress.

"It's not much, but they're keeping an eye on DiCillo's place. They'll track him down. As far as Romano goes, we went to Riker's, applied some pressure. He's not talking, not yet anyway."

Harper absentmindedly rubbed her tired eyes as she rested her head in her hands. Jack continued noticing her weary expression.

"Don't worry. We'll get him."

"Oh, I'm not. I have every faith in your persuasiveness. I'm just a little worn-out."

Jack rose for his seat and internally chastised himself for overstaying his welcome. "I should go. Let you get some rest."

"No! No, please don't." Her voice pleaded with just a hint of whine. The last thing she wanted was for Jack to leave. "Please stay, I didn't mean it like that. I just… I don't know… I just want things to be normal again, you know?"

Jack smiled a crooked smile that made her heart flutter. She liked having him here - in _her_ space. It made her feel like he was more apart of her life. The idea seem silly, even to her. He was her boss, of course he was a part of her life, but having him here made is seem more, more personal. The irony that it took getting beat up and threatened by a mob boss to get him here was not lost on her.

Jack's eyes wondered around the room. He couldn't help but feel a little out of place in the eclectically decorated apartment. The décor was actually quite refined, far nicer than he ever managed on her salary. The living room walls were adorned with framed vintage posters: an old film, _The Sin of Nora Moran_, an advertisement for the second New York Film Festival, and Puccini's _La Boheme. _There were nice feminine touches around like a vase of white daisies and a cozy, pink throw over the back of the sofa. All the while her ever-present iPod played some slow blues reminiscent of Billie Holiday. It created a very nice ambiance. He knew his unease had nothing to do with the enviroment and everything to do with his escalating feelings for the apartment's inhabitant. Feelings he knew he could never act on, especially not after what's happened.

He meandered over to the pink iPod. "What's on this thing?"

Harper chuckled at his usage of the word 'thing.' "Oh you know, a little of this, a little of that."

He began pushing at the buttons. Eventually finding his bearings and scrolling through the artist menu.

Harper smiled, Jack looked adorable scowling at the small gadget. Adorable probably wasn't a word used to describe Jack McCoy on a regular basis - or irregular basis for that matter. Kittens and puppies are adorable. Jack McCoy is charming, sexy, even attractive maybe, but rarely adorable.

"Buckcherry, 'Crazy Bitch'," he frowned questionably at her, "Colorful."

"Yeah…" Harper chortled and fidgeted as Jack hit play and the loud rock music began playing. "You, probably don't want to hear that one."

Harper's insistence peeked his interest. He held up his finger as he listened to the songs lyrics.

"_Break me down, you got a lovely face, we're going to your place, __and now you've got to freak me out, scream so loud, __getting fucking laid, you me to stay, but I got to make my way, __Hey! You're a crazy bitch, but you fuck so good I'm on top it-"_

"OK…." Jack quickly stopped the song from continuing.

Harper laughed out loud. His embarrassment tickled her. She even thought he was blushing a little. "Told you…."

Jack was glad to here Harper laugh even if it was at his expense. He quickly scrolled down the artist names on the iPod. "Bob Marley, Iron & Wine, Johnny Cash, The Moldy Peaches, Rihanna, Otis Redding…" Jack smiled approvingly, "Sheryl Crow, Van Morrison, The Who… that's quite an extensive collection."

She shrugged sheepishly. "I like music…."

Jack continued scanning the assortment.

Harper smiled as the opening notes of Van Morrison's 'Into The Mystic' began to play. She closed her eyes and began to sway to the strumming guitar.

Jack watched as the battered young woman lost herself in the music. As he walked over to her the little voice inside him told him to stop. No, it screamed at him to stop. He ignored it's pleas and he reached down and took her small hand in his.

Harper was gently jostled out of her reverie.

Jack motioned to the open space in the floor and mumbled a barely audible, "Come on." Jack smiled as she followed him in bafflement. He exhaled softly as she slid into his warm arms.

"_We were born before the wind, Also younger than the sun, __Ere the bonnie boat was won, As we sailed into the mystic…"_

Harper's heart was beating so fast and hard she was certain it would leap out of her chest at any moment. She wondered if Jack could feel it. She felt like the temperature in the room surged by twenty degrees and knew full well her face was as red as a sunburn. She wished she had some control of the affect he had on her.

"…_Hark, now hear the sailor's cry, Smell the sea and feel the sky, __Let your soul and spirit fly into the mystic…"_

The sensation of having her so close was intoxicating. He was keenly aware of everywhere their bodies touched. Her hand clutched his bicep, his arm wrapped around her waist while his hand rested on the small of her back, her other hand was like a feather in his, and their hips touched ever so lightly. Unable to resist Jack pulled her in closer, dangerously closer. He could feel her warm breath on his neck and the air swam with the scent of her coconut shampoo. Their faces were within centimeters of one another. She looked at him, her eyes marred with both desire and uncertainty. Reluctantly he looked away.

"…_When that fog horn blows, You know I will be coming home, __And when that fog horn whistle blows, I gotta hear it, __I don't have to fear it, And I wanna rock your gypsy soul, __Just like way back in the days of old, And together we will float into __the mystic…"_

The song faded and they slowly ceased their swaying. She pulled away slightly so she could look at him. He dropped her hand and let both of his rest on her delicate waist. She wanted him to kiss her so badly she thought she was going to burst. He smiled down at her. Something in that smile told her it wasn't going to happen. She couldn't quite put her finger on it, but there was a sort of quiet resignation in it.

She pulled away a little more and decided to break the tension in her usual manner. "Just so you know, dancing with you in my leaving room isn't exactly normal." She smiled teasingly as she broke their embrace. "But it _is_ a normal I could definitely get used to." Her hand slid down his chest and poked him playfully as she walked to a safe distance.

"I should go…."

"Yeah…."

He headed for the door before turning around adding, "Don't forget to call your parents."

She blushed and nodded. "Goodnight Jack."

* * *

**A/N: A special thank you to Charaxes for the crack pairing of Rubirosa and Logan. I couldn't resist the temptation! XXOO**


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

A.D.A. Connie Rubirosa was roused out of her deep slumber by the smell of brewed coffee. She'd been sleeping hard. Too hard, she was confused and disoriented. Harper's humming from the kitchen helped jolt her back to reality. Rubbing her eyes she grabbed for her cell phone. I had been four hours since she was last up. She must have slept through the last two alarms.

Connie shuffled into the kitchen. "Are you always so chipper this early?" she grumbled with a smile. "I guess I'm not a very good nurse. I must have turned off the alarm."

Harper laughed out loud at the sight before her. Connie stood there in an wrinkled, oversized Mets t-shirt, pajama bottoms, and a rat's nest on top of her head. "Must have been quite a date, Miss Rubirosa." Harper turned and hopped up on the kitchen counter, something her mother always detested, and picked up her cup of coffee. "So? Details."

Connie sighed and reached for a mug. "It was OK. He was nice."

"He was _nice_. That's it?" Her tone was incredulous. Connie just shrugged innocently. "You didn't get in until almost one. That sounds better than just _OK_."

"OK, it was good." Connie paused and took a sip of her coffee. "Don't you look at me like that Harper VanMeter. It's like pulling teeth to get any details out of you about Cyrus."

Cryus. Harper's stomach churned at the mention of his name. "Oh, Connie," Harper groaned. "The Cyrus situation is complicated." More specifically the Cyrus-Jack situation was complicated, but that was more than Harper was willing to share at the moment.

"Oh, Harper," Connie mocked. "Life is complicated. I guess it's the small stuff we need to learned to appreciate."

"The small stuff?" Harper asked with a quizzically unconvinced smirk.

"Yep. The small stuff. You know, a leading hand on the small of your back," she paused and rested her hand on Harper's knee. "Or a very public - and unintentionally embarrassing - kiss on the cheek."

Harper rolled her eyes at Connie and looked down. "Or a slow dance…." she gazed absently at the creamy liquid in her mug.

"Exactly." Connie smiled wistfully.

Harper eyed her friend suspiciously. "So why do I get the feeling we're not talking about Mike here? Or maybe I should say _Logan_."

Connie chuckled. "Don't even start. It's too early and I didn't get enough sleep for that conversation."

Harper didn't press her. "So, the small things, huh?" She gave Connie a look to imply she wasn't quite buying it.

They laughed and finished their morning caffeine fix in silence.

The rest of Harper's Sunday went by relatively uneventful.

First she took a long, brisk walk in the park, much to the dismay of her protection detail. They're lucky she had a concussion. She would have much preferred to run. After that she went down to the 2-7 to take another stab at the elusive perp books. Nothing came of her diligence. Just a bunch of faces that rung no bells.

The hustle and bustle of the squad room was relatively quite. Despite the people around her Harper felt alone. Connie and Mike were at the office trying to figure out a way to get a judge to sign off on a search warrant. With the less than circumstantial evidence they had it wasn't going to be easy. She ran into Cyrus and Bernard on her way in. They were headed over to Murray Hill. She wondered if this was how most victims felt. Alone, despite being attended to constantly by a fury of people. Out of the loop on her own life. The not knowing what was going to happen was maddening.

As she rode home in the backseat of the squad car Harper rolled down the window. She laid her head back, closed her eyes, and let the cool November air wash over her face. So much had happened in the last 48 hours. She wanted this guy. More than she'd wanted any win she'd every gotten in a courtroom. If only she could identify him somehow. Make their case more solid. There had to be a way. She knew she was missing something. The key was there. It was within reach, but she just couldn't quite grasp it.

Connie called to check in later that night. Harper laughed and joked that they were both having separation anxiety.

"Don't worry about me. I'm fine. The guys are just outside if I need anything. Enjoy sleeping in your own bed. I'll see you in the morning."

"OK. You're sure you don't need to take a couple of days? I'm pretty sure Jack's not expecting you. He'd understand if you need more time."

"Absolutely not. I've got a motion hearing before Judge Lutz at ten and depositions all afternoon. Besides, I'll go nuts if I don't. So I will most definitely see you tomorrow." They said their goodbyes and hung up.

Connie reminded Harper of a subject she'd been trying to keep her mind off of: Jack. She hadn't heard from him all day. She'd resisted the urge to call him herself. What was he up to? He'd been so attentive the day before. Had she done something wrong? Maybe she'd been too forward with him. Though Jack McCoy didn't strike her as the type of man to be scared away by a direct woman. Had she really been all _that _forward with him anyway? This situation was getting to be as exasperating as her inability to identifying her perpetrator.

The only thing Harper wasn't confused about was the beckoning call of her bed. Without Connie there waking her up every couple of hours she was looking forward to finally getting a full nights sleep.

* * *

Harper strode onto the seventh floor of Hogan Place about an hour earlier than her usual time. Her impeccable attire and smart up-do effectively hid any sign of her restless night. She tossed and turned all night only getting a couple of hours of sleep. On the upside - her apartment was now spotless. The office was still dim with a few lights on here and there. She loved the peacefulness she felt here. The normalcy. As she approached her desk Harper was surprised to find a very colorful balloon bouquet adorning her desk. Half a dozen balloons saying 'Get Well' and 'We Love You' tied to a cellophane bag full of Reese's Pieces - her favorite. Connie. There was no card, but Connie was written all over the gift. It only took a second for Harper to notice the tidiness of her desk. She always left her it neat and orderly , but it seemed especially sparse this morning. Her case files were gone. Connie must have done some straightening up in an effort to help. Slightly irritated Harper began searching through her drawers. She wanted to get a jump on the day's work.

"Good morning. How was your night?" Connie's voice possessed it's usually cheery ring.

"Hey, good morning," Harper looked up from her open drawer and smiled. "It was good. Thank you so much for the balloons."

"Your welcome. Lose something?"

"Yeah," Harper chuckled. "My case files. You didn't move them off my desk did you?"

"Uh, no…."

Harper recognized that look. Connie knew something she didn't want to tell her. "What? What is it?"

She looked at Harper nervously, "Jack had your cases reassigned."

"He what?!"

"Like I said, I don't think he expected you back immediately and I'm sure he didn't want you to worry about continuances, and even if…."

Harper held her hand out to silence Connie while she took a couple of deep and hopefully calming breaths. In her already irritated state this was the last thing she wanted to deal with. Without saying a word she rose and quickly walked in the direction of Jack's office.

"Harper!" Connie shouted in a hushed tone, "Remember, he's your boss!" Connie knew Harper had a tendency to fly off the handle. She hoped she wouldn't say something she'd regret.

"Is he in?" Harper asked Jack's secretary impatiently without breaking her stride towards the door.

"Yes…." she answered obviously confused.

Harper marched into the office. Jack sat at his desk already hard at work behind several stacks of open law journals. He was more than a little surprised to see her.

"Harper, why are you here?" he asked as he took off his reading glasses.

"Because I work here. Or at last I did before somebody reassigned all my cases." She stood there with her hands on her hips trying to be as imposing as possible.

"I did what I thought was best, Harper. For everyone." Jack rose from his desk and walked to the open door and shut it quietly. "You shouldn't be here. Go home."

Despite her anger she was touched by Jack's concern. So concerned he couldn't be bothered to pick up a phone yesterday she thought. "Don't do that," she shook her head trying to push away any warmth she felt for him. "Don't play the concerned friend. You stole my cases! I've worked my ass off on those cases. They're mine and I want them back!"

Jack leaned against his desk with his arms crossed, familiar scowl affixed to his face. "You've been through a lot. You don't have to rush back into things. Take a few days, get your head back on straight."

"I don't need a few days, Jack," hopelessness leaked into her voice. "I _need_ my cases. I _need_-" Harper's voice began to shake "-my life back. I _need_ my job. You took them from me and I _need_ them back!" She stared at him with defiant tears streaming down her face. She hated to cry in front of people, but somehow she didn't mind doing it in front of him.

She was right. Although he was sure she hadn't meant it that way, this was all his fault. None of this would be happening if he hadn't flirted with her at that party and let her leave with him, both of them hoping it would go further than it should. He started it and now he was taking away her lifeline - her job. He wanted to comfort her, but after the other night in her apartment, he thought better of it.

"I'm sorry that this happened to you, Harper."

His eyes conveyed so much more than just sympathy. Empathy, regret, anger, compassion, disappointment, all of which washed over Harper like a flood. She turned her back to him and began to sob quietly. She wrapped her arms around herself, trying to hold herself together emotionally and physically. She could feel Jack as he moved in behind her, even in her emotional state his closeness made the hair on the back of her neck stand up. She wanted him to hold her, _needed_ him to.

Jack, unable to ignore the woman falling apart in front of him, put his hands on her shoulders. He rubbed them comfortingly and wished there was something he could do to make it all go away. All he could do was be there for her and he couldn't really do that, not without encouraging the feelings he was sure she was developing for him.

Harper stood there crying for a few more minutes. It felt good to have a release, even if she did seem like a raving lunatic in the process. She took a deep breath, wiped her tear streaked cheeks, and turned to face Jack. She started to speak, but didn't know what to say, so she just shrugged and smiled at Jack's worried face.

Jack smiled down at her. He put his hands in his pockets in an effort to resist the urge to pull her to him. "Better?"

She let out a sputter from her lips, smiled, and nodded.

As Jack walked back to his desk he let a sigh of resignation. "If you insist on coming in you can do case law research. I'm sorry, but your cases have already been reassigned. Maybe I jumped the gun, but it's done."

Harper felt defeated. "Research? I'm not a clerk, Jack. I'm an attorney. I belong in a courtroom."

"I'll make sure some arraignments get thrown your way. Deal?"

Harper narrowed her gaze at him. "Deal." Now she knew how defense attorneys felt bargaining with him. He was steadfast and she didn't stand a chance. "Who's handling the Montgomery case? The depositions are this afternoon. I could help if they want."

"Gaffney's got it." Jack answered smiling at her attempt to worm her way back into her case. "She could probably use an extra hand."

Harper spent the rest of the day helping Kelly Gaffney take depositions. She hadn't had the opportunity to work much with Gaffney. She seemed like a good lawyer, knew what she was doing. And she wasn't bothered by Harper lending a helping hand.

The next couple of days went by quietly. Even though she had complained when she was assigned the job, Harper always enjoyed clerical work. It was the type of work that suited her well. The best part was it kept her mind busy. She still wasn't sleeping well. She woke up four or five times throughout the night usually drenched in a cold sweat. Physically, though she was feeling much better. Her bruises were all but gone and her head was healing nicely. She expected to have her stitches removed Friday afternoon. The case seemed to be progressing. Everyone was kind enough to keep her in the loop as much as possible. Bernard and Cyrus seemed to think they were closing in on DiCillo and Romano was 'this close' to giving up what he knew. All in all things were moving in the right direction.

* * *

Jack walked out of the locker room into the crowded gym of the McBurney YMCA. Thursday wasn't the usual night for his basketball league games. This week's game had to be moved back a day, so the gym was more crowded than usual. He didn't mind he always like the sound of a busy gym, kids yelling, balls bouncing, sneakers squeaking. It reminded him of his childhood. As he scanned the gym's multiple courts for his teammates a familiar voice caught his attention.

"C'mon Ref! You've been making that same bad call all night! Give us a break!" Harper stood with her arms raised in the air, smiling in frustration.

Jack couldn't believe it. Did she have no limits? He walked over to her court and motioned for her to join him at courtside. He could have been imagining it, but he thought he sensed some hostility as she approached him. Probably his guilty conscience for not having spoken to her since Monday in his office. "Do you really think you should be playing basketball? You have a head injury."

"Jack," she answered breathlessly as she took a swig from her water bottle, "don't mother me." Jack looked at her unconvinced. "I have four older brothers and I've played sports my entire life." Harper watched the action on the floor attentively. "Do you know how many concussions I've had? I know my body." Jack just continued to frown down at her. "So does this mean your speaking to me again? For the moment at least…." Harper's eyes never left the court.

"Yeah, sorry about that. It's been a busy week." He felt like schmuck. "I hear you've been very helpful with research."

"Yep. That's me. Helpful." She looked up and flashed him a condescending smiled. He narrowed his gaze and she couldn't help but smile for real. Sometimes she hated herself when she was around him. She couldn't stay mad at him even when he deserved it. It was infuriating.

"So, _you _play basketball," he prodded as he scanned her petite figure.

"Yes. Is that so hard to believe?" she laughed. Jack just shrugged. She whistled and motioned to her teammates on the floor. "I'll have you know Jack McCoy, I was an All-State point guard my junior _and_ senior year in high school. I maybe short, but I'm scrappy." She winked and ran off to re-joined the game.

"Don't over do it!" Jack yelled after her.

Jack's game started, but he made a point to keep an eye on Harper. She never seemed to let up. Constantly pushing herself, going for every rebound, running the ball up and down the court, guarding her assignment like her life depended on it. She had heart that was certain.

Harper loved playing sports. She always had. It was a natural part of growing up with so many brothers. In fact playing with her brothers and their greater size advantage had made her much better player in her opinion.

She went for a long rebound and immediately felt the heat from the defense. Surround by the other women she came up with her elbows out and bounce passed to a teammate. Free of her double team Harper was able to set up for a two-pointer. The pass to her was deflected and, true to form, Harper dove to recover the ball. She and a player from the other team both struggled for the ball. The ref blew his whistle signaling a jump ball. When the other player helped pull Harper to her feet the world turned upside down. Everything spun. She wavered and instantly fell to the hardwood floor.

A crowd of players formed around her. She was already back on her feet when Jack came rushing over to assist. She held her head as the dizziness began to subside. Jack held onto her arm and walked her to the bench.

"I'm fine, really. I just got up too quickly." A couple of her teammates lingered. She encouraged them to continue the game. Jack looked on concern etched on his face. "Go back to your game Jack. I'm fine."

"How much longer does your game have?"

"Just a couple of minutes. I won't go back in. I promise."

Reluctantly Jack returned to his court. She could feel his eyes on her, watching over her. She sighed. Jack McCoy was easily the most confusing man she'd ever known. One minute he's all flirty and concerned the next he doesn't speak to her for three days. At times she tried to convince herself she was imagining the whole thing. Jack thought nothing more of her than a colleague and friend. She didn't want that to be true. It didn't make any sense, but when he wasn't around it hurt. And not just emotionally either, her insides literally ached in his absence. It perplexed her.

After her team won their game she retreated to the locker room. She relished the warm shower. She let the water slowly wash away the day, it's worries and her confusion. She laughed out loud as the song from _South Pacific_ popped into her head: _I'm gonna wash that man right outta my hair and send him on his way!_

If only it was that simple.

By the time she left the locker room the gym had all but cleared out. A few people lingered here and there, some staff cleaning up, but the chaos of earlier was long gone. Jack stood waiting against the wall, idly dribbling a basketball.

"I thought you might be setting up permanent residence in there."

His voice was low and husky and sent chills down Harper's spine.

"You didn't have to stay." She wanted so badly to be mad at him. At the same time she wanted him to wrap his arms around her and hold her and never let go.

"I wanted to make sure you were OK."

"That's what Steve and Eric are for…" she smiled and motioned to the two officers that were her constant companions.

Jack ignored the slight. He deserved it. "How's your head?"

Harper put her hand on the side of her head and nudged it a little, "Still attached." She smiled, embarrassed by her silly joke.

As if a magnet were pulling him he took a couple of steps closer. Close enough to smell her coconut shampoo, the same as the other night. "You play a good game. You were right. You _are_ scrappy."

His warm smile swept away any lingering anger Harper felt. Damn him! "Thanks." She shrugged. "I told you… it's my low center of gravity. It's disconcerting to the taller players." Jack smiled and his eyes twinkle with mischief and her heart ached for him. She took a step closer. "How much longer are we going to do this, Jack?"

His smiled faded to a quizzical smirk. "Do what?"

"Pretend like there's nothing going on between us."

They stood there holding each other's contemplative gaze. A young girl came by wielding a push broom. She unintentionally ran the oversized broom into Harper's feet breaking the tension between them.

"Oh gosh! I'm so sorry."

Harper smiled reassuringly at her. "It's OK, no problem."

As the girl turned around to continue her duty something caught Harper's eye. The teenager's blond hair was pulled up into a ponytail revealing a cluster of small stars tattooed on the back of her neck. Harper's ears began to ring as flashes of images hurdled through her head. That was it!

"Jack!" Her heart was beating and she could feel her cheeks flushed.

"Harper, I'm not sure that-"

She could see the seriousness of their interrupted conversation on his face. That would have to wait. She waved her hands in dismissal, "Oh, no, no never mind that." She smiled and her eyes twinkled with excitement. "He had a tattoo," Harper reached down and grabbed Jack's hand stroked the top of it between the thumb and forefinger, "right here. A nautical star."

Realization fell onto his face, "Jimmy DiCillo has a tattoo on his hand." He squeezed her hands in his. This was exactly what they need. He instinctively touched her cheek with his free hand and smiled encouragingly. "You did good."


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

Jack watched Harper pace nonstop around the interrogation room. He looked around the familiar green room. He'd been there so many times, so many situations, with so many different people over the years.

"What could be taking so long?" Harper said as she interrupted his reminiscing.

"It's going to take as long as it takes," Jack answered with a patient smile. "And wearing down an path in the floor isn't go to make it go faster."

Harper was absently chewing on her thumbnail as she stopped pacing. She couldn't help it. She felt like a current of electricity was surging through her body. She pulled out the chair across from Jack and attempted to wait patiently.

Within a couple of minutes Harper was up pacing again. Jack chuckled at her half-hearted attempt. She just shrugged sheepishly at him. "So you have four brothers?" Jack asked trying to put her at ease.

Harper smiled at Jack's attempt to distract her. "Yes. I'm the only girl and the youngest."

"So you were _extra_ spoiled then?"

"More than you could imagine, McCoy." She slide back into the chair across from him. "What about you?" Her gaze narrowed, "You strike me as an oldest child. The one in charge, always taking care of things."

Jack continued to be amazed by the young woman's intuitiveness. "I have a younger sister."

"Mm-hmm," Harper flashed a satisfied smile. "I know a big brother when I see one. So it was just the two of you then?"

"Yes." Jack sighed heavily. This was getting dangerously close to a topic he avoided, painstakingly so. "A family of four must seem quite small to you."

Harper nodded. "Between the six of us and the friends we were constantly bringing home we usually had a pretty full house." She smiled, trying to imagine what Jack was like as boy. Was he one of those disconcertingly serious children? Or was his seriousness just a by-product of the life he's lead? "Are you a native New Yorker, Jack?"

Jack shook his head. "I grew up in Chicago. But after forty plus years I'm pretty close to the real thing. And you? Where in the south are you from?"

"_I _am from a little town called San Saba, Texas." Her accent slid in effortlessly when saying the tiny town's name. "It's a couple of hours north of Austin. Not very big, about three thousand people. I moved here in '92 for school and I've lived here pretty much ever since."

Jack raised his expressive eyebrows, "Pretty much?"

Harper shrugged, "Well-"

Just then Det. Cyrus Lupo came into the interrogation room. Harper rose from the table immediately jolted back to the situation at hand.

"So what's going on?"

"Well," Cyrus sat at the table and opened a file. "We're trying to get him down here for a lineup. That OK with you?" He looked up at Harper for reassurance.

Harper's face became ashen and she nodded absently. "Of course."

"You don't have to…" Jack intervened. Lupo shot him a bothered look.

"No... no, I want to." She nodded firmly trying to assure both Jack and herself.

"OK, well, I need to get a statement." Cyrus put on the voice of a man going through the motions, "How did you happen to remember that your perpetrator had a tattoo?"

Harper exhaled and tried to contain the enthusiasm in her voice. "We were playing ball at the Y." She motioned towards Jack as she started pacing the room again. "Afterwards we were standing around talking and the little girl with the broom ran into me. As she walked away I saw some stars tattooed on the back of her neck. And that's when I remembered his star. During the attack I remember thinking 'Pay attention. Look for anything you can use.' and I did. But I guess it was just lost somewhere in here." She grabbed her head in a very animated motion.

"So your memory was just jogged." Cyrus said with a shrug as he began to write down the statement.

"Exactly." Harper stood watching Cyrus write as Jack continued to be his patient self.

"So, uh, you two play ball together, huh?" Cyrus continued to write and tried not to look too interested.

Harper blushed at the insinuation. "No, um, it was league play. Our games just happened to be on the same night." She felt like a teenager caught in a lie.

Jack watched as Harper stumbled over her words - not a usual trait of hers. He disliked Lupo for embarrassing her. He had to resist the urge to come to her defense. As much as he wanted to he knew Harper could handle herself.

"Cozy…." Cyrus smirked, "I didn't know the DA's had an over-50 league."

"Cyrus…" Harper made no effort to conceal her disapproving tone.

Jack chuckled. "Believe it or not detective, I'm still managing to hang in there with the young guys." He leaned back in his chair. His cockiness was palpable.

Harper couldn't believe it. A verbal pissing contest!

"Oh, really," Cyrus flashed his boyish smile. "Well maybe the precinct should get a team together. Give the great legal minds a run for their money."

Jack smiled confidently. "You could, but be forewarned, we're undefeated. I'd hate for you to get your ass handed to you by the legal minds."

This was ridiculous. "If you guys wanna go ahead and whip 'em out, I'll measure 'em and we can get this over with." Jack and Cyrus just looked up at her, surprise etched on their faces. "No? No takers? OK then, shut up," she looked back and forth between the two men, but settled her eyes on Jack. "Both of you." Her cheeks flushed in mild irritation.

Just then Connie came into the interrogation room with good news. She immediately sensed the tension in the air. She looked at Harper almost apologetically, "Am I interrupting?"

Harper lifted her eyes from the two men. "Not at all. What's up?"

Connie crossed her arms and grinned with satisfaction. "We've got a lineup." She and Jack instantly began strategizing. Harper could see the fluidity of their former partnership emerge.

Without saying a word Cyrus gathered his files and quietly exited the room. Harper followed him, finally catching up with him at his desk. "What was _that_?" Her tone tinged with a little more annoyance than intended.

"What?" Cyrus feigned ignorance poorly.

"Cyrus…" He just looked at her stubbornly. "You know what. Why are you suddenly playing the jealous boyfriend?"

Cyrus knew he had no defense. He just smiled a crooked smile and shrugged.

"You don't want to be with me, Cyrus."

He shot her a baffled look, "Why would you say that?"

"If you had wanted me you would have called after we went out." She smiled and poked his arm playfully. "We hung out, we had fun, it was convenient."

"You know you're too practical for your own good."

Harper recalled the look on Cyrus' face when he talked about his sister-in-law, Jenny - which he did several times in their few hours together. "Yes, and I'm practical enough to know that _both_ of our interests lie elsewhere."

Cyrus squirmed uncomfortably in his chair. "Yeah," he paused and studied Harper closely. "But _McCoy_? Really Harper?"

"That, Cyrus, is none of your business." She winked as she walked away.

* * *

"Ms. Van Meter, you know how this goes. The lineup can't see you and because this is a voice lineup you can't see them either. If you hear the voice of your perpetrator let us know." Lieutenant Anita Van Buren gently guided Harper through the identification process. She was right, Harper knew the drill. She also knew she needed to be certain. She'd never been claustrophobic before, but she was beginning to understand how it felt. The room was small and dimly lit. Connie and Mike were by her side functioning as representatives of the district attorney's office. Lt. Van Buren, Cyrus, Bernard, and a defense attorney were also present. She wished Jack were here. It was decided he should stay out, in case he were called as a witness in the future.

Harper felt on edge. Her heart pounded inside her chest as the men, one by one, began reading their prepared words. Number one, not him. Number two, nope. Number three, negative. Number four. Harper's head started pounding the second he began talking. Her cheeks flushed. She felt like she'd been hit by a ton of bricks.

"That's him. Number four."

"Are you certain?" Mike asked.

She turned to look at him, suddenly aware of the tears streaming down her cheeks. Her appearance may have been shaky, but her voice was confident and unwavering. "I'd stake my life on it."


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

Jack McCoy waited for the elevator in the lobby at Hogan Place. He had just finished a string of meetings at City Hall and a lunch meeting with Judge Petrovsky and was eager to get back to his office to get an update of the DiCillo case. His victim, ADA Harper VanMeter, had identified him the night before and they were working on a plea. As much as he hated to plead him out it was the best way for everyone - the US Attorney, the State of New York, and the victims in all the cases - to get what they wanted. Plea or not Jack was determined to make sure justice was served. Jimmy DiCillo won't be able to hurt or threatened anyone again. The elevator door opened and a couple of people snickered as they exited. Jack immediately saw the object of their folly. Harper was leaned up against the back of the elevator. Her arms across her chest holding several files. Her head was down and she was clearly asleep.

Jack entered the elevator and pressed the button for the 7th floor. The elevator's ascent did nothing to rouse Harper. Jack cleared his throat. Still nothing. He couldn't help but smile. "Harper," his raspy voice slightly louder than a whisper.

Harper raised her head, blinking back to awareness. She immediately straightened her posture, "Jack?"

"Catnapping is probably not the worst thing ever done in this elevator." His face smiled, but it was marred with concern.

Harper couldn't believe it. She'd just closed her eyes for a second on her way up to the 10th floor. Now here she was coming up from the lobby. Who knows how long she'd been riding up and down on the elevator. And of all of the people going in and out of this building, Jack was the one to find her. She blushed. She didn't even attempt to conceal her embarrassment. "Late night, I guess." It wasn't an out-right lie. She had been at the 27th precinct late into the night.

"Are you sure that's all?"

She sighed. She gave up weeks ago trying to hide things from Jack. He always knew. "I haven't been sleeping very well this week. I can't imagine why." She flashed him a sarcastic smile. "But it'll get better. Just need a little time." Last night had been the worst since her attack. She'd only gotten thirty or forty minutes of sleep. Every time she closed her eyes she heard his voice.

Jack looked at his watch, 12:30. "Why don't you take the rest of the day? Go home. Take a proper nap."

Harper shook her head. "No, that's not necessary. Besides, I'd go home, get all comfy in my bed, and I'd just lay there looking at the ceiling. And I've already cleaned every inch of my place - twice. I'll be OK. No more catnapping. I promise." She hoped the conversation wouldn't turn into another argument. She just didn't have the energy for it. Attempting to change the subject she added, "Anyway I'm already leaving early. I get my stitches out today."

"You know, if you'd like to talk to someone, a professional, I'm sure Skoda or Olivet could fit you in sometime." Jack wished she'd talked to someone. She'd been through a traumatic event, but Harper could give him a run for his money in willfulness, so she'd probably decline.

Harper wrinkled her nose and shook her head as she reached over and pushed the button for the 10th floor - her original destination.

The doors opened to the 7th floor and Jack slowly exited. He wanted to address their interrupted conversation from the night before, but knew that this wasn't the time. "Go home, if you feel like it."

Harper flashed a mischievous grin and said thank you just as the door closed in front of her. "Jack…. Always the one in charge," she said to the empty vessel.

* * *

After getting her stitches removed Harper decided to take Jack's advice and try to get some sleep. She laid down on the couch with a book and hoped it could lull her into a dreamless sleep. Or at the very least a sleep without Jimmy DiCillo. After an hour or so she slowly drifted off into a decent slumber.

Harper awoke suddenly, jolted out of a dream. Her neck was stiff from her propped up position on the sofa. How long had she been sleeping? She squinted as she read the blurry Roman Numerals of the wall clock - 6:27. Panic shot through her body, she'd over slept! Had she slept all night? She had to get running or she'd be late for work. Harper jumped up and head for her bedroom. Slowly the realization that it was Saturday came to her. She walked to her window and looked out. Dawn… or was it dusk? She rubbed her eyes in confusion. Her heart had stopped pounding, but her head began to throb. She grabbed her cell phone to end the uncertainty. 6:31 _p.m., _she laughed out loud at herself and collapsed on the bed. She'd slept for two and a half hours. The longest she'd slept in a couple of days. As she laid there feet dangling off the side she began to recall the dream she was having when she awoke.

_She was in Battery Park. She was dressed in her usual jogging ensemble, a tank top and shorts, hair in a ponytail. She was sweaty and out of breath, clearly she'd been jogging, but she had stopped because she heard a baby crying. She scanned the area and found a little boy, very young, maybe two, sitting on a bench. She stopped and looked at him. He was gorgeous; shiny brown hair long enough to part on the side, huge brown eyes, and pink cherubic cheeks. He was sitting alone, holding a small toy basketball and bawling his eyes out. She looked around confused. Who would leave this adorable baby all alone? Anyone could snatch him right up. Harper walked over and knelt in front of the bench to look him in eyes. _

"_Well, hello there," she smiled and wiped the tears from his cheeks. _

_He stopped crying immediately and giggled. He reminded her of one of her nephews. She picked him up, pondering what to do._

"_Where's your mommy, huh? What happened? Don't you worry little one…" she held him close and kissed his forehead. _

_The unknown boy just sat in her arms playing with the ball as if he had no care in the world. Harper began scanning the park looking for a frantic parent. There was nothing unusual. No one seemed to be panicking, searching for him. In fact it was a beautiful spring day, kids playing, families picnicking, dogs catching Frisbees, etc. Her emotions went from worry to anger. How could this happen? Why wasn't anyone looking for him? Who could be this careless? She bounced him lightly, as if to soothe him. When really it was her that needed the soothing._

_She saw a police officer down the path and decided to alert him to the situation. As she walked the baby began laughing and dropped the basketball. She followed the ball as it rolled to the grass stopping at a pair of male feet. _

"_There you are," he bent down to pick up the ball, that she could now see it had a Chicago Bulls logo on it, and held it out to the child. "I was about to send out a search party."_

_It was Jack. He was smiling. Her favorite smile, the kind that touched his eyes. And he knew the baby. In fact the way the boy was carring on, he knew him, too. Suddenly she wasn't sweaty or in her running clothes anymore. She was in a blouse and jeans, her ponytail was replaced by loose locks pushed back with a headband. Jack reached for the child and he gladly went with him. _

_Harper wanted to ask Jack what was going on, how he knew the little boy, and where were his parents? But she didn't, the words wouldn't form. She went along with what was happening; confused, but still somehow knowing what was going on. _

"_You hold on to a ball about as well as your mama, don't you?" Jack laughed and looked Harper's way waiting for her reaction._

"_Oooh really?" The words were coming out of Harper's mouth without her even thinking about them. "Daddy's just a sore loser, baby." She reached over and grasped his chubby hand and kissed it. _

_The trio strolled over to a blanket near a tree. They sat and played. She'd never seen Jack look so tranquil. He laughed and rolled the ball back and for to the boy. They were practically mesmerized by everything he did. She bent down and kissed his little feet and he laughed. Jack grabbed at his belly and the baby giggled until he was almost in tears. Their joy wasn't only directed at the child. They were at all times touching one another, whether they were holding hands or one had an arm draped around the other. She'd never felt so much love for a person, let alone two._

_Next thing she knew they were laying on the blanket. Jack was propped up against the tree with his arm around Harper while she rested her head on his chest. The baby laying face down, also on Jack's chest, was sound asleep. Jack was reading. She thought it was Shakespeare. Hamlet maybe. She closed her eyes and listened to his voice. She loved his voice; raspy, yet soft and fluid at the same time. She listened to the boy's shallow breathing. Her heart swelled so much she thought it would burst. She opened her eyes and lightly fingered the boy's hair. Some reality came back to her. Who was he? Was he really theirs? Jack wouldn't lie. Then Jack said it was time to go. When she sat up they weren't in Battery Park anymore. They were on a football field, her high school football field. They were in San Saba. Harper handed the sleeping baby to Jack and began folding up the blanket. _

_"Are we staying for the game?" She asked Jack, but when she turned around he was gone. The baby was gone. Panic started to creep in. Then her friends from high school were there and it was time for the halftime show. She had to march. She picked up her flute, but knew she didn't remember the music, let alone the program. She went along with it and to her surprise she marched in time and played her music with perfection. The entire time she was eager to finish. She needed to find Jack and the baby. Where had they gone? Finally the show was over and she scanned the stands for Jack and their son. Instead she found Mike and Connie. The were bundled up and cheering along with the crowd._

"_Have you seen Jack and the baby?" she asked them almost accusingly._

_They just smiled and cheered, "GOLDEN ARMADILLOS! GO! FIGHT! WIN!"_

_Harper could tell they were going to be of no help. Then, she saw Jack through the crowd. He carried the cherub faced boy in his arms. They stopped and were laughing at a clown. Why was there a clown at a football game? Harper didn't know understand, but she was feeling very anxious. She need to get to them. She headed their way, but they started walking again. They headed into locker room. She opened the door to the locker room, when she went through she was in the hallway at the Manhattan Courthouse. She looked ready for work, hair pulled back into a twist with a grey suit on. She searched the busy hallway for Jack and her boy. _

"_Jack!" She yelled not caring whom she might disturb. "Jack!"_

"_Harper?" She turned around relief washed over her entire body. "Thank God! Where'd you go?!"_

_He looked at her perplexed. _

_She realized that except for his briefcase he was empty handed. "Where is he?"_

"_Who?"_

"_The boy." she said exasperated._

_Jack frowned. There was no sign of the calm Jack from the park. He was acerbic and weary. "Who?" His tone said he was running out of patience. "Are you ready? The judge wants to see you."_

_Panic, again, washed over her, but this time it was controlled. Harper knew she had to see the judge. "OK, but where _is _he?" Then she heard his cry again. Just like in the park. She set out searching for him as Jack yelled something at her about the judge. She cared, but this seemed more important. She searched and searched and…._

Then she woke up.

Harper laid on her bed going over the dream. How strange! The absurdity of it all; she and Jack with a baby, her marching during halftime, Connie and Mike cheering at the game. It was the silliest dream she'd had in a long time.

But her thoughts kept falling to the baby and how she felt in the park laying there with him and Jack. She'd never felt such peace. And now laying here in her apartment, she felt alone. Not just alone, but empty. She couldn't shake the strange feeling.

Harper was suddenly aware of her grumbling stomach so she pushed the ridiculous dream aside and headed to the kitchen. She searched through the pantry and refrigerator trying to find something she wanted. Nothing seemed to catch her eye. She thumbed through the takeout menus that she kept in one of the kitchen drawers. Pizza, Indian, Greek, Chinese... Chinese it was. She placed her order, opened a bottle of white zin, and retreated to the living room to relax. She put on Patsy Cline - very fitting for her mood - and waited for her dumplings and lo mien.

Whether it was the wine or the couple of hours of sleep she wasn't sure, but Harper felt pretty good. The music hummed through her effortlessly. As she relaxed her mind couldn't help but wonder to her earlier dream. The baby, Jack, the park… it had felt so real. Then the strangeness of the football game… and the clown. What the hell was that all about? She couldn't help but laugh out loud. At the same time there was something about the whole thing that left her feeling almost melancholy.

There was a knock at her door. She looked at the clock. It was too soon to be her food. She opened the door without looking through the peep hole or keeping the chain attached - one of the perks of having armed police officers outside your door.

"Jack." She was certain she blushed. Thank God he couldn't read minds or he'd know she'd been thinking about him. Knowing him, he may know regardless. Harper wasn't an expert on Jack McCoy, but she could tell something was going on. There was an energy about him. "What's up?"

Jack couldn't wait to tell Harper the news. He came straight over from the office. As had happened previously when he entered her apartment he was assaulted with the ambiance. The citrus and flowery sent of her perfume, Patsy Cline's 'Sweet Dreams' playing on her beloved Ipod, the warm glow of the candles sporadically lit around the small living room. It was a heady sensation. He reprimanded himself for letting his thoughts stray to the impermissible and from the task at hand. He pulled himself back to reality, suddenly aware of the amused look on Harper's face.

"Jack?"

"We got him." Jack smiled her favorite smile.

The smile faded from Harper's face. Her body language immediately tensed. "What do you mean?"

Jack chuckled hardily. "I mean, he sung like a canary. Not only did DiCillo give up both Romano and the mysterious 'Smoking Man', and not only did he take the deal we offered him, but he also threw in some information about Misiano himself."

Jack beamed. She'd never seen him like this. "S-so what does that mean exactly?" She felt dense asking the question. What she really wanted to say was 'What does that mean for me?', but _that_ seemed too egotistical to ask.

Jack sensed her apprehension right away and, of course, Jack being Jack knew exactly what was wrong. "That means Jimmy DiCillo took 20 to life and you won't have to worry about him again."

To say that relief washed over Harper would be a understatement. She immediately felt a 100 pounds lighter. Like the weight of the world she didn't realize she was carrying was lifted from her shoulders. She exhaled and a small laugh escaped her.

Jack watched as the realization fully engulfed Harper. Before his eyes she, once again, became the carefree woman he'd come to know and grown so close to. Without warning she began to laugh, not a chuckle, but a full, whole-hearted laugh. It had just been a week, but it seemed like so long since he'd last heard it.

"And the protection detail?"

"I thought you'd like to do the honor." He smiled and ushered her to the door.

Harper went out into the hallway and thanked the two men for their diligence. They were unconvinced and made a call to Lt. Van Buren, which was evidently all they needed. Harper gave each man a kiss on the cheek and strict orders to go home to their wives. She had to admit she liked them and was very thankful, but she certainly wouldn't miss them.

Jack watched Harper's display from the doorway with an amusing grin.

"Have a drink with me?" Her face was practically glowing. "I even have scotch, so you can't say no." She grabbed his hand as she walked past him pulling him back into the warm apartment. She poured their drinks and handed Jack his glass. "What should we drink to?"

Jack looked at her with faux earnestness, "To justice." He held up his glass.

Harper giggled freely, "Corny, but fitting." She clinked her glass to his and they drank their scotch in a comfortable silence.

"I owe you, Jack. I owe _all _of you, more than you can imagine. I don't think I would have gotten through this without you guys. Thank you so much, for everything."

"You don't owe me anything. Besides you did all the heavy lifting." He winked.

Just like the first time he winked at her outside the courthouse her heart fluttered. She thought of bringing up their conversation from the night before, but didn't want to ruin the good mood she was in. She had a feeling, despite all the evidence to the contrary, Jack was going to shoot her down. She knew he probably should, but she didn't want him to. She wanted him to want her. To want her so badly he couldn't help himself. To want her the way she wanted him.

Jack put his glass down, "I should go."

Harper instantly deflated. "OK…." She tried to hide her disappointment as best she could.

As he walked to the door her thoughts were drawn to the last time they were alone in her apartment. The night they'd danced. She was certain he was going to kiss her, certain of the desire in his eyes. But it didn't happen and she watched him walk out. She couldn't quietly acquiesce and let him make this decision alone. Every inch of her body screamed 'STOP HIM!'

"Jack?"

He turned. His hand already on the door knob. She was striking standing there in the dim apartment, so much so he couldn't find the words to reply.

"Thanks again."

Brilliant. If her feminine wiles didn't wow him her verbal prowess would.

"Anytime." He held on to the knob to keep from reaching for her. She had no idea how alluring she was, how much he wanted her. He shouldn't be here. He shouldn't be having these thoughts. He's her boss, he's old enough to be her father. It wouldn't work.

She came closer to him. "I just…. Well, I…."

Her perfume filled the small space between them. It was the lightest smelling perfume he'd ever smelt. Citrus with just the slightest hint a of floral undertone. It was intoxicating. She reached up and kissed him softly on the cheek. Her lips were like silk against his weathered skin.

Harper began to pray she wasn't making a fool of herself. She knew he wanted this. So many times over the last few weeks they'd come so close. When his lips finally found hers she froze. What if this was a mistake? He's her boss. Cyrus was right. She was too practical for her own good. Practicality be damned! She wanted him more than she'd ever wanted anyone. It wasn't practical, it wasn't neat, and it was clean. But it _was_ real and tangible.

She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him back. All the pent up desire and tension released in that one swift motion. His smell, his taste, his touch, it was sensory overload. He wrapped his arms around her waist, making her feel safe and protected.

She knew at that moment she never wanted to be kissed or held or touched by any man other than Jack McCoy.


	10. Chapter 10

_Author's note: This will be the last chapter for this story. I'm_ _officially calling it complete. I am, however, going to continue writing for Jack and Harper. They've got a few stories left in them. Besides, I'm not quite ready to give them up. _

_Thank you to everyone who followed and reviewed faithfully. You guys rock! A special 'thank you' to mccoylover. I'm pretty sure I wouldn't have gotten past chapter 4 without your encouragement and support. Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!_

* * *

Chapter 10

The room was dark except for what little light flowed in from the living room. Harper lay there trying to catch her breath. Her heart still pounded in her chest. She could hear Jack next to her. His heavy breathing synchronized with hers. She stretched out her body; letting out a satisfied groan in the process and flexed her fingers.

Jack chuckled and broke the silence, "Something wrong with your hands?"

Harper could hear the amusement in his voice. "Yeah, I can't feel them - or my toes for that matter." She turned onto her stomach to face him.

He laughed heartily. "Numb? That's the first time I've heard that one."

"Well with me, it's a sign of a _really_ good orgasm." She leaned into him and rested her chin on his sweat dampened shoulder. "Or in this case… _several _really good orgasms."

He looked down at her and even in the dim light of the bedroom could see her cheeks turn crimson. His lips found her forehead and he lightly kissed it.

"I need water." Her voice barely above a whisper, "Do you want something?"

"No, I'm fine."

She gracefully slipped out of bed and casually walked out of the room without covering up. Generally she would have grabbed a robe, but she felt brave with Jack. She didn't have to hide herself from him.

Jack smirked at the young woman's brazenness as she strode out of the room. Her nakedness wasn't lewd. It was elegant almost. He exhaled a heavy sigh. His mind wondering to their previous lovemaking; the feel of her body pressed against his, her mouth on his body, the taste of her skin. He shouldn't have let this happen.

Harper came back into the room, the only illumination now coming from the street lights outside her window. She offered her bottle of water to Jack. He sat up and drank, not realizing how thirsty he actually was. Harper slid in between the sheets next to him. She nestled up to him and rested her head on his chest. Their positions eerily similar to those in her dream a couple of hours earlier. Their bodies fit like they were made for one another. She inhaled deeply; his smell filled her senses. Harper stroked Jack's hand as it rested on his stomach. She was surprised at its softness. Coupled with tenderness his soft hands had moved over her body expertly like he'd touched her a thousand times before. She felt immensely close to him and again was jolted back to her dream.

"Do you remember when you asked me why I became a lawyer?"

Jack snickered, "I believe I got the stock answer of 'To help people.'" He watched as she continued to pet his hand. The look in her eyes was distant.

She smiled remembering his impervious gaze at her 'stock answer'. "I was 12, when I decided I wanted to be a lawyer." She paused in thought. "My mom works for the city of San Saba, 28 years now. My daddy, like his father and his father's father, was a roughneck for 47 years. Since he was 16 - he retired last year." She sighed. "They were high school sweethearts, got married right after high school. My entire life I watched my parents live paycheck to paycheck. Struggle with the constant needs of five children. I mean, don't get me wrong, we always had everything we needed, but it was hard. Daddy often worked double sometimes triple shifts."

Jack brought his free hand up and tenderly ran it through her long hair as he listened quietly.

"I watched him come in every night, sometimes in the mornings after he'd worked all night _after _working all day - straight to the tub without fail. His hands always had grease on them." She began tracing the creases of his palm. "No matter how much he scrubbed. He's a good dad, always made time for us, fishing, games, plays, whatever. I'm sure it comes as no surprise to you, but I was definitely a Daddy's Girl." Jack grunted confirming her statement. "Somewhere along the line I decided I wanted out. I wasn't going struggle to make ends meet. I wasn't going to marry a boy I'd known my whole life, someone who had to take a bath before he could sit down to dinner every night. That's why I became a lawyer. Even then at 12 I-" Harper's voice wavered, "I was so ashamed that I felt that way." She softly chuckled, "I've never said that out loud before."

They lay there a few minutes Harper still caressing Jack's hand tenderly. His breathing lulled and drew her back to the present.

"I didn't even want to be a lawyer." His deep, raspy voice was startling in the quiet of the dark bedroom. "I wanted to be a cop like my old man. He made it clear at a very early age that _I_ was going to be a lawyer. It was not an option. Nor was failure. He was my father." Jack shrugged beneath her. "I loved him and I wanted to make him happy. _He_ was… an awful father, a tyrant. And over time, I began to hate him. He's been dead for over twenty years now and I still do." He wrapped his fingers around hers. He brought her hand to his lips and kissed it with quiet understanding. "Parent's elicit a great number of different emotions from their children. They're all valid. It's the ones that resonate, the lasting ones that matter."

She looked up at him. He held their intertwined hands at his chest. "And yours is hate?"

Jack smiled. "The SOB's lucky he got that."

She released her hand from his and stroked his face carefully. Their lips met in a soft and gentle kiss that quickly became passionate and demanding. Jack's hand slid to her breast, kneading it provocatively. Her moan stifled by his mouth. His hand moved past her waist and around her rear pulling her into him.

Their kiss broke as Jack began making his way down her neck. Harper felt his growing hardness when her pulled to him. A throaty chuckle escaped her, "Again?"

He ceased grazing her neck and smiled wickedly. With both hand on her rear end he pulled her fully on top of him. Their hips began grinding together causing Harper to whimper wantonly.

"If you'd rather not…" he said as he started to move her off of him.

She groaned frustratingly. She pressed down on his stiffness causing Jack to grimace in slight pain. She chuckled and smiled mischievously. "Don't be a tease, Jack."

* * *

Jack lay exhausted beneath Harper. He could feel her heart pounding on his chest. His hands roamed leisurely over her body causing chill bumps to form. She laughed as she moved from on top of him, flexing her numb fingers and toes as she went.

"Are you good at _everything _you do?"

He wrapped his arm around her as she curled into his chest. "I told you," his lips rested on the top of her head, "failure's not an option."

Lulled by Jack's steady breathing and comforting presence Harper silently drifted off into a deep, dreamless sleep. And for the first time since her attack, she slept through the night.


End file.
